Aisin timing belt kit failed. What are other good options?

gizzo20 · Oct 25, 2024

I purchased the Aisin timing belt kit from Rock Auto a little over a year ago. It has already failed, of course, right after the warranty expired. I would be an idiot to buy the Aisin kit again, so I am looking for another option.

What kits have others installed with good results? Not looking to spend an arm and a leg on OEM. My van is old and I have already spent too much money on it.

I'm looking at the Gates, AC Delco, and Continental kits at Rock Auto. Can anyone share their experience with any of these kits?

Only looking for real experiences. Please don't reply if "you've heard" or "you've read."

If you're wondering how my kit failed, see this post

https://www.odyclub.com/posts/2611632/

I am not looking for troubleshooting advice because I have already diagnosed the issue. I have spent hours diagnosing and researching my problem.

I removed the serpentine belt and the timing belt covers and the sound is amplified with the covers off. It's either the timing belt or the water pump. No way to be sure if it's the timing belt without replacing it. If I'm going that far, I'm replacing it all.

I know we have trust issues on this site, but you're going to just have to trust me on this one.

Please don't post your opinion. Only looking for real experiences.

I know we have a lot of Aisin and OEM fanboys, and I was one of them. But I will not be using Aisin again. Too many recent reports of quality issues. Don't believe me, do your own research.

wwdwgs · Nov 4, 2024

Can anyone compare the kit form RA to the one from NAPA (from above pictures) to see where the parts are made in?

gizzo20 · Nov 4, 2024

The NAPA kit that I posted is the house brand. It is not the Aisin kit. They sell the Aisin kit for $350. I do not know where the Aisin components are made. No indication on the box or the parts.

Yellow TT · Nov 4, 2024

I've done many timing belt jobs using the aisin kits with no issues. The vehicles i have worked on that had the Amazon kits had noise coming from the tensioner puller . The tensioner had hairline cracks that are not quickly noticeable useless some force is applied to it. So far each kit has been from Amazon. The same goes for the honda actuator, tensioner and chain kits being sold on Amazon and ebay. There is too much play on the guides and the parts are very cheap knockoffs. The metal feels like pot metal very light and weak.

John Clark · Nov 5, 2024

I have used many Aisin kits on Honda J series engines and never had a single issue, including 2 on my own Ody. Short of using OE Honda parts at a premium cost, Aisin is the best you can buy. I wouldn't use Gates, Continental, Dayco or any other store brand kits. I've seen those used and the water pumps generally leak after 60k miles or so.

If you're buying your parts on Amazon or eBay you do so at considerable risk. The bearings in the genuine Aisin kit are made by Koyo and are the exact same bearings you'd buy from Honda. I don't know what's in the other kits as I have never, and will never, use another kit for Honda.

HaOsLsE · Nov 6, 2024

I bought the kit from amazon too but my mechanic knew right away it was trash. The tensioner pulley didnt look and feel right and the same as the belt. He had a spare OEM belt because he works on hondas all the time...so I bought his and bought the rest OEM from Honda. I had a couple bad parts per my mechanic and now try to buy local oem or majestic honda online. I will be due in about 35k miles and will be buying OEM again. Not worth the chance of it failing.

thscott · Nov 6, 2024

Nothing wrong with your decision or logic. Just know that the Aisin kit, when bought from a reliable source such as Rock Auto, is high quality and only $200. Don't buy the Aisin kit, or most any auto part, from eBay or Amazon third party sellers.

HaOsLsE · Nov 6, 2024

Oh very good point. I shouldn't have left that point out. Ebay and Amazon are now, at least to me, not a reliable place to buy parts.

Yellow TT · Nov 7, 2024

I just completed a timing chain job on a 4 cylinder accord. The actuator, chain and other components where all fake. Customer had bought his items off ebay. They where all in sealed bags with honda labels on them but didn't look right. When I compared to authentic honda parts even their weight was different. Luckily I had authentic parts in stock to do the job.

John Clark · Nov 7, 2024

None of this is anything new. This has been going in for years. Don't buy on Amazon or eBay. The Aisin kit from Rockauto or your local auto parts store is every bit as good as what you buy from the Honda dealer. If you feel better paying all that money from Honda that's your perogative but genuine Aisin is very high quality and you won't have a problem. I've used more of them than I can count and will continue to use them.

I think it's not fair to give Aisin a bad name because some buy fake kits on Scamazon or fleaBay. There are tons of "genuine Honda" parts on Amazon and eBay that are total fakes too, including "genuine Honda" timing belt kits. Honda doesn't sell timing belt kits.

94eg! · Nov 7, 2024

My Aisin pump from RockAuto makes this noise. So what? It's not even determined exactly what this noise is. I'm certainly not worried about it.

Yellow TT · Nov 8, 2024

That is another failure point of some of the kits. I had to replace valves on a vehicle with a failed waterpump. I've seen honda watwrpumps that are very good fakes. They even have the eagle on numbers stamped on them but the sizes of the stampings are off. I would inspect the bearing on the pump. Also seen a noisy aisin pump with alot of play still in service because with only about 10k miles on it.

John Clark · Nov 7, 2024

There is a bulletin 08-045 out there for 05-08 Ody and certain 09 Odys where the pulley mount for the idler pulley needs a taper shim, a new timing belt drive gear, and on the 07 Accords, a water pump to stop what they call a chirping noise. I've never heard it on all the J series engines I've worked on and the Aisin kit doesn't include the tapered shim but some of the others do. That is probably the noise you're hearing and is a known issue.

For 05 models the Taper Shim Kit part number is 04148-RCA-305, 06-10 models is 04148-RCA-306.

Obviously has nothing to do with the Aisin kit or any other kit.

94eg! · Nov 7, 2024

2012 Odyssey. Also my 05 TL has an OEM pump and the shim. I hear it on both. I'm probably just overly sensitive or something

John Clark · Nov 7, 2024

All timing belts make some noise. They're quieter than toning chains most of the time though. Older Toyota V6 engines have timing belt noise issues too. I have seen a couple of Toyotas that make a metal scraping sound that is actually from a front cam gear that has small amounts of old belt material embedded in it. It sounds like a metal on metal bearing failure but is due to a dirty cam gear. The only real fix on those is to replace the cam gear.

There could be a similar harmonic on Honda sprockets. In the end, as long as genuine quality parts are used you will be just fine.

wwdwgs · Nov 8, 2024

John Clark said:
All timing belts make some noise.

Remember the times, when there were gears (some were made of plaastic to reduce noise) and no timing chains, nor belts?

gizzo20 · Nov 8, 2024

Received my shipment from RockAuto.

"Overnight parts from Japan"

I ordered the GMB timing belt kit and Gates timing belt

To my surprise, the GMB kit came with a Mitsuboshi belt.

I know you are asking why did I choose the GMB kit. It was solely based on experience. The last timing belt replacement from the previous owner used GMB parts and they lasted 7 years without any issues.

I was a little disappointed to see that the water pump is now made in Thailand instead of Japan. However, the quality looks very good, arguably better than the Aisin pump I received.

All other parts appear to be of very good quality.

Here is the breakdown:

Gates Unitta T329 timing belt - made in Japan

GMB water pump - made in Thailand
Mitsuboshi timing belt - made in Thailand
Engine seals - made in Taiwan
GMB tensioner - made in Korea or Taiwan
GMB idler and tensioner pulleys -Korea or Taiwan
Idler bolt - made in Japan

John Clark · Nov 8, 2024

gizzo20 said:
Received my shipment from RockAuto.

"Overnight parts from Japan"

I ordered the GMB timing belt kit and Gates timing belt

To my surprise the GMB kit came with a Mitsuboshi belt.

I know you are asking why did I choose the GMB kit. It was solely based on experience. The last timing belt replacement from the previous owner used GMB parts and they lasted 7 years without any issues.

I was a little disappointed to see that the water pump is now made in Thailand instead of Japan. However, the quality looks very good, arguably better than the Aisin pump I received.

All other parts appear to be of very good quality.

Here is the break down.

Gates Unitta T329 timing belt - made in Japan

GMB water pump - made in Thailand
Mitsuboshi timing belt - made in Thailand
Engine seals - made in Taiwan
GMB tensioner - unknown
GMB idler and tensioner pulleys - unknown
Idler bolt - made in Japan

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The two water pumps I've ever seen leak prematurely are Gates and GMB. Good luck!

Jeepwm69 · Nov 8, 2024

I haven't read this whole thread yet, so forgive me if I repeat something that has already been addressed.......

Any way to DATE the timing belts? Rockauto has a lot of stock that is liquidated from auto parts stores, so hypothetically one could buy a "new" belt that is several years old. Rubber deteriorates as it ages.

I just had a Gates timing belt break on my 94 Accord. I've driven my 93 Accord (sold in 2008) and this 1994 Accord a total of 750K+ since 1993, and while I changed my first two timing belts on the 93 at 90K and 180K, I then started stretching the interval a bit, settling on 150K as a "no further" moment.

I've taken 4-5 timing belts to 150K without issue, but I've always used OEM timing belts from Honda. This time I tried a Gates, and it snapped at 140K. The rubber wasn't cracked or bad looking, it just broke. It was only AFTER I had installed that Gates belt from Rockauto that someone on another board warned that some of their "new" parts might be quite old. Doesn't matter on hard parts. Does matter on rubber parts.

Anyhow, pulling the head on the 94 Accord this weekend to see if I can put a new head and timing belt on it, or if it's time to scrap it.

The 08 Odyssey got a new OEM timing belt installed by the dealer at 60K in 2022, because while it wasn't due because of mileage, the van was 14 years old at that point and I didn't want to risk it breaking from age.

So, given that I'm shopping for a belt now, is there any way to check them for age? If not, I'll probably order one from my local Honda dealer, because they'll have to order it directly from Honda, and I figure that's my best shot at getting a "fresh" one.

thscott · Nov 9, 2024

Jeepwm69 said:
I haven't read this whole thread yet, so forgive me if I repeat something that has already been addressed.......

Any way to DATE the timing belts? Rockauto has a lot of stock that is liquidated from auto parts stores, so hypothetically one could buy a "new" belt that is several years old. Rubber deteriorates as it ages.

I just had a Gates timing belt break on my 94 Accord. I've driven my 93 Accord (sold in 2008) and this 1994 Accord a total of 750K+ since 1993, and while I changed my first two timing belts on the 93 at 90K and 180K, I then started stretching the interval a bit, settling on 150K as a "no further" moment.

I've taken 4-5 timing belts to 150K without issue, but I've always used OEM timing belts from Honda. This time I tried a Gates, and it snapped at 140K. The rubber wasn't cracked or bad looking, it just broke. It was only AFTER I had installed that Gates belt from Rockauto that someone on another board warned that some of their "new" parts might be quite old. Doesn't matter on hard parts. Does matter on rubber parts.

Anyhow, pulling the head on the 94 Accord this weekend to see if I can put a new head and timing belt on it, or if it's time to scrap it.

The 08 Odyssey got a new OEM timing belt installed by the dealer at 60K in 2022, because while it wasn't due because of mileage, the van was 14 years old at that point and I didn't want to risk it breaking from age.

So, given that I'm shopping for a belt now, is there any way to check them for age? If not, I'll probably order one from my local Honda dealer, because they'll have to order it directly from Honda, and I figure that's my best shot at getting a "fresh" one.

It’s usually not the rubber belt that fails. More often a timing failure is caused by failure of the tensioner.
But I do agree the newer the belt, the better.

Jeepwm69 · Nov 8, 2024

procrastinator said:
Sounds like user error or fake Aisin parts were used.

This is a very real possibility today. I just tore down a Honda ATV engine that had an aftermarket cylinder on it, but still had Honda stampings on the china cylinder.

gizzo20 said:
Here is the sticker off my kit purchased last year. Shows a date of 5/1/23. FWIW.

View attachment 186667

The kit contained:

Mitsuboshi timing belt

Koyo idler and tensioner pulleys

Aisin water pump

Aisin tensioner

Answers my question asked in my prior post. Thanks for that!

wwdwgs · Nov 8, 2024

Jeepwm69 said:
Rubber deteriorates as it ages

Usually the timing belts outlast any other TB components, unless they were damaged somehow during storage or installation. In "our" (Ody owners) case the tensioners fail.

Jeepwm69 said:
is there any way to check them for age?

I presume that if the package has a lot number, a manuf. date may be traced. If it has just a SKU number, then no.

lemon389 · Apr 21, 2025

Hello,

I’ve read your entire post and understand that you strongly recommend buying Aisin parts directly from RockAuto. You also advised avoiding Amazon and eBay at all costs.

I’m aware that there are third-party sellers on Amazon. However, I’m wondering—would it still be a bad idea to buy a kit that is sold and shipped directly by Amazon?

Thanks in advance!

thscott · Apr 21, 2025

The risk is definitely lower if it is sold and shipped directly by Amazon, but there is still a risk. Do you have any other option to buy the Aisin kit in your country?

wwdwgs · Apr 21, 2025

Instead of buying the TB kit from Amazon and gambling, buy it from Rockauto - they ship internationally.

mikeceli · Jun 28, 2025

I am a trained Mechanic (among other things).

Once, and only ONCE in my career, I found a NEW, DEFECTIVE, name brand, Serpentine (not timing) belt cause a odd, difficult to diagnose noise. Kind of a "warbling" noise, very strange noise. I thought is was anything else, but concluded the Serpentine belt was the noise.

Yellow TT · Jun 30, 2025

In the past I have had alot of success using any good quality timing belt kit. Napa, gates, aisin, etc. I've done my fair share on timing belts on various kinds of Hondas and other brands with no issues. However recently have seen many counterfeit parts for both honda timing belt and timing chain kits. These counterfeits copied are very good and difficult to detect unless you have authentic original parts to compare. Within the last couple of years I have done so many valves jobs for local shops, mechanic associates, or just referral bbusiness. This past month I repaired 2 kseries, and 3 jseries engines because of timing component failures. Yes honda has always had issues here in there with their tensioners on both belt and chain timing drives but nothing like this.

88bomber · Jul 28, 2025

@gizzo20 - any update? did you install that new kit? warble gone?

gizzo20 · Jul 28, 2025

Yes. The GMB kit with the Gates belt resolved the issue.

wwdwgs · Jul 28, 2025

I also used GMB Timing Belt kit before I learned that Aisin kit.

t-rd · Jul 29, 2025

I used the "older" Aisin kit and lived with that 'warbling' sound for all of 5 years and 100k miles on my 07 Accord V6. This was 8 years ago now. Nothing bad came of it, it was an annoyance. It all went away at the next timing belt job with all OEM parts. I do not have the shim kit installed either. The Accord now has 335k miles or 35k miles on the last all oem timing belt components.

Aisin timing belt kit failed. What are other good options?

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